Commissioners OK loan for telebusiness

Red Willow County commissioners Tuesday morning approved a $120,000 loan from the county's loan re-use program to a telebusiness that plans to locate a facility in McCook.

Commissioners also trimmed $10,000 from the fair board's 2003 budget and approved tax levies for fire departments, cemeteries and the High Plains Historical Society.

Kay Lavene, director of McCook Economic Development (which administers the county's revolving loan program), told commissioners Custom Response Teleservices will use the loan to purchase inbound/outbound computer software to operate a facility that will accept and make marketing phone calls.

The business, located temporarily at the KDS building on West B, will create 70 full-time jobs within its first year, Lavene said. Over 18 months, the loan from the county will create four full-time positions that will pay $8.25 an hour, with benefits, she said.

Commissioners cut the fair budget from $306,217 to $296,217, and adopted it with $10,000 cuts spread out over lighting, water, heat, printing and publishing, building repairs, grounds repairs and building supplies.

Commission Chairman Earl McNutt told fair board secretary Deb Lafferty commissioners must submit the county's budget to state officials by Sept. 20, and need to know as soon as possible whether to include a loan to pay for the horse arena proposed by McCook-area rancher Tom Kiplinger.

Commissioners tabled for another week any decision on the Kiplinger arena, to allow lawyers time to write a suitable contract.

Commissioners approved these tax levies for political subdivisions that fall within the county's 45-cent levy:

Danbury Cemetery: $0.016141 tax levy will raise $2,621.

Hamburg Cemetery: $0.009825 tax levy will raise $800.

Lebanon Cemetery: $0.025053 tax levy will raise, $2,400.

High Plains Historical Society: $0. 002849 tax level will raise $16,022.

Bartley Fire Department: $0.038000 tax levy will raise $17,290.

Beaver Valley Fire Department: $0.038000 tax levy will raise $19,567; $0.033762 bond levy will raise $17,385.

Indianola Rural Fire Department: $0.038000 tax levy will raise $26,999.

Red Willow Western Rural Fire Department: $0.038000 tax levy will raise $46,437.

In other action:

- Commissioners ap-proved a certificate of completion from Figgens Construction of Red Cloud for summer armor coating projects that totaled $136,470.92. The original contract price was $124,160, which did not include additional cold mix and small patching projects okayed by commissioners.

- Commissioners did not change a $75-a-month raise they okayed Aug. 6 for three full-time county health department employees. A motion by Commissioner Steve Downer to reduce the raises to $50 a month (okayed for other county employees) failed for lack of a second from McNutt or fellow commissioner Ed Bass.

Commissioners made no further adjustment in the salary for the health department's office manager, whose pay is $393 a month less than other office managers and/or deputies within the county system.

Health Department Director Margaret Swanda said her office manager's duties and work load are comparable to those of other officer managers, and are more complex than those of clerical staff.

McNutt told Swanda it is too late in this year's budget process to make a sizable adjustment in the office manager's salary, and they would discuss the situation next year.

- Commissioners briefly discussed advertising for bids for additional concrete at the new Household Waste Collection building on South Street.